The Mekons started out in late-’70s Leeds as a collective art project, and that’s basically what the band still is, more than 40 years later. Over the years, the Mekons have moved from sound to sound — political punk, skittery post-punk, experimental quasi-reggae, doom-laded country-folk, various combinations of all of those. They’ve remained cult heroes, and they’ve kept making music, building a hell of a legacy over the decades. Today, with no advance warning, they’ve released a new album.
The Mekons planned to record their new album Exquisite together in Valencia. Instead, the members of the band, all of whom are scattered around the globe, put the album together in quarantine, each of them sending their individual pieces together in isolation. This is not an ideal way of putting together rootsy, impassioned folk-punk, and yet the Mekons made it work. Through most of Exquisite, they sound a whole lot like a real band playing in a room together. Stream the album below.
Right now, Exquisite is available only at Bandcamp. You can get it here.
